What other language is most similar to Spanish?

Question

Is it Portuguese? Or Italian? Or someother one? Anyone knows? Thank you.

wow yolii ! i was going to ask the same question . great question yolii - 00b6f46c, Jul 7, 2010

Answer 1

Definitivamente el portugués. Sin ningún tipo de dudas.

El italiano y el castellano (más conocido como español, pero éste proviene del Reino de Castilla, por eso se llama castellano *) provienen del mismo idioma, el latín. Pero el portugués es una variante del castellano antiguo, es muy similar al gallego que es un idioma que se habla en el noroeste de España.

*Nota: En España se hablan varios idiomas como el gallego, el vasco, el catalán, el valenciano y otros más. Todos provienen de la misma raíz lingüística salvo el vasco, el oficial y el que todo español tiene que aprender es el castellano y debido a que lo habla todos los españoles se le denomina español.

Answer 2

What I want to do is start learning a new language, one that is most similar to Spanish and I was debating whether to study Portuguese or Italian.

And I'm inclining towards Portuguese....

I hope you decide to learn it; then I won't be the only poster here who speaks Portuguese. It feels so lonely sometimes

Answer 3

(as a side note, in Brazil we joke that to speak Italian all you have to do is speak Spanish and move your hands a lot.

I love it! But why bother to speak at all?

Good point

Can you have accent in hand movements?

Considering how linguistically messed up Italy is, they probably have a lot of "hand dialects"

Answer 4

(as a side note, in Brazil we joke that to speak Italian all you have to do is speak Spanish and move your hands a lot.
I love it! But why bother to speak at all?
Can you have accent in hand movements? This question may be funny to some, but I do not speak any language without an accent.

Answer 5

Thank you "josue3" the information you provided is very interesting and useful.

I have no background in either one of these two languages, I agree with "Heitor" that Portuguese is easier to read but I don't know which is easier to understand to my Spanish/English ear.

Based on some of the feedback on this thread is seems like Italian is easier to understand to someone who speaks Spanish...

Thank you all for your feedback-very much appreciated.

What I want to do is start learning a new language, one that is most similar to Spanish and I was debating weather to study Portuguese or Italian.

And I'm inclining towards Portuguese....

Answer 6

Josue, this is very interesting as I was just going to say that. If reading, the Portuguese looks definitely easier, however, when spoken, that is a different story.

Answer 7

my vote goes to Italian

Here is a piece of dialogue between Susanna and Figaro, from Mozart's opera. Which one do you think is closer to Spanish, or easier to understand?

ITALIAN:

• Cosa stai misurando, caro il mio Figaretto?
• Io guardo se quel letto che ci destina il Conte farà buona figura in questo loco.
• E in questa stanza?
• Certo: a noi la cede generoso il padrone.
• Io per me te la dono.
• E la ragione?
• (toccandosi la fronte) La ragione l'ho qui.
• (facendo lo stesso) Perché non puoi far che passi un po' qui?
• Perché non voglio. Sei tu mio servo, o no?
• Ma non capisco perché tanto ti spiace la più comoda stanza del palazzo.
• Perch'io son la Susanna, e tu sei pazzo.

PORTUGUESE:

• Que estás medindo, meu caro Figaretto?
• Estou vendo se a cama que nos dará o Conde ficará bem neste lugar
• E neste quarto?
• Correto. O patrão generoso nos cede-la
• Eu, por mim, daria-la
• E a razão?
• (tocando a testa) A razão, tenho-la aqui
• (fazendo o mesmo) Por quê não podes fazer que passe um pouco aqui?
• Porque não quero. ÿs tu meu servo ou não?
• Mas não entendo porque tanto te desagrada o quarto mais cômodo do palácio
• Porque sou a Susanna e tú és um palhaço